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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. land — ground
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. land — to come down
  6. ground — the earth
  7. game — a match
  8. roll — a list
  9. swing — music
  10. swing — to play on
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. kid — child
  13. roll — a cake
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. rule — a law
  16. swing — in golf
  17. ground — crushed
  18. ground — a position
  19. kid — to tease
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. land — a country
  22. game — wild animals
  23. rule — government
  24. game — a kind of play

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com